Saturday, October 28, 2006

Egypt to seek Chinese aid on nuclear programme

CAIRO, Oct 28 (AFP) Oct 28, 2006Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak will seek Chinese help for Cairo's planned civil nuclear programme during a visit to Beijing next month, Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit said in remarks published on Saturday."The possible aid which China could give to Egypt over its civil nuclear programme to generate electricity will be one of the subjects of talks," Gheit told the government newspaper Akhbar al-Yom.

Mubarak heads for China after a November 1 to 3 visit to Russia. He will be in Beijing for a summit on Sino-African cooperation after which his visit will become an official one to the country on November 6 and 7.

During the visit, the two countries will sign several agreements covering economic and technological fields, said the Egyptian minister.

In late September, Cairo announced it was relaunching its civil nuclear programme after a halt of 20 years following the Chernobyl nuclear accident in 1986.

The announcement coincided with increasing Western pressure, spearheaded by the United States, against Iran for allegedly wanting to produce nuclear weapons under cover of a civilian programme. Tehran vehemently denies the charge.